One Way Ticket

By far the valley of the kings tomb art is the best preserved. The pyramids at Giza were built by the earliest civilization along the Nile. As we began visiting other sites moving up the Nile, we mostly were moving forward in time. That time from 3000 BCE forward was still difficult to get our minds around, i.e. the new kingdom was only 1200 years BCE. And so it went. 

Even though much or most artifacts have been removed from the graves by archaeologists or thieves, the art was still there. That is why King Tut’s tomb has been so important. It had not been vandalized. Only a few tombs are open to the public. The moisture from all the breathing inside the tombs may over time deteriorate the painted walls. Our guide, Heshram, was able to explain the beliefs concerning the afterlife and how the tombs reflected that early theology. Instead of building pyramids to be buried under, the kings who are buried in the valley of the kings constructed their tomb sites under a pyramid shaped mountain. Individual tomb entrances could thus be hidden and protected, and the pyramid shape makes possible contact with the realm of the afterlife and the gods who dwell there.

What a place! Oh my!